International News

Yemen rebels claim attack on Saudi oil facility in Jiddah
Yemen’s Houthi rebels say they struck a Saudi oil facility in the port city of Jiddah with a new cruise missile, just hours after the kingdom finished hosting its virtual Group of 20 leaders summit
November 23, 2020

2 hours ago

Cubans receive last of remittances via Western Union

Western Union has closed its 407 locations across Cuba, a sanctions-driven move that will leave thousands bereft of remittances on an island that depends heavily on them — or force them to use less reliable ways to bring in money

2 hours ago

A woman waits to be attended at a Western Union office on its last day of business in Havana, Cuba, Monday, Nov. 23, 2020. Restrictions from the Trump administration on the military-controlled operator that handles cash deposits will go into effect Monday at 6 p.m. local, keeping Cubans from being able to retrieve money sent from abroad through Western Union – the main source of cash remittances for many families. (AP Photo/Ismael Francisco)

3 hours ago

Catholic Church cancels Guadalupe pilgrimage over pandemic

Mexico’s Roman Catholic Church says the COVID-19 pandemic has forced cancelled this year's celebration of what’s considered the world’s largest Catholic pilgrimage — for the Virgin of Guadalupe

3 hours ago

FILE - In this Dec. 12, 2019 file photo, pilgrims arrive at the plaza outside the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Mexican Catholic Church announced on Monday, Nov. 23, 2020 the cancelation of the annual pilgrimage, the largest Catholic pilgrimage worldwide. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte, File)

November 23

China launches ambitious mission to bring back material from the moon’s surface for the first time in more than 40 years

November 23

Guatemalan Congress backs down on budget after protests

Guatemala's Congress has backed down on a 2021 federal budget that drew angry protests, including the burning of part of the Congress building

November 23

Ethiopia warns Tigray residents that 'anything can happen'

Ethiopia’s government is again warning residents of the besieged capital of the embattled Tigray region as the clock ticks on a 72-hour ultimatum before a military assault, saying “anything can happen.”

November 23

This image made from undated video released by the state-owned Ethiopian News Agency on Monday, Nov. 16, 2020 shows Ethiopian military gathered on a road in an area near the border of the Tigray and Amhara regions of Ethiopia. Ethiopia's prime minister Abiy Ahmed said in a social media post on Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2020 that "the final and crucial" military operation will launch in the coming days against the government of the country's rebellious northern Tigray region. (Ethiopian News Agency via AP)

November 23

Reports: Israeli PM flew to Saudi Arabia, met crown prince

Israeli media are reporting that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu flew to Saudi Arabia for a clandestine meeting with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, which would mark the first known encounter between senior Israeli and Saudi officials

November 23

FILE - In this Nov. 9, 2020, file photo, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visits a new coronavirus lab at Ben-Gurion International Airport, near Tel Aviv, Israel. Israeli media reported Monday, Nov. 23, 2020 that Netanyahu flew to Saudi Arabia for a clandestine meeting with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, which would mark the first known encounter between senior Israeli and Saudi officials. (Ohad Zwigenberg/Pool Photo via AP, File)

November 23

Dutch populist Baudet says he won't lead party at elections

The leader of a Dutch right-wing populist party says he will not lead it into parliamentary elections in March

November 23

Yemen rebels claim attack on Saudi oil facility in Jiddah

Yemen’s Houthi rebels say they struck a Saudi oil facility in the port city of Jiddah with a new cruise missile, just hours after the kingdom finished hosting its virtual Group of 20 leaders summit

November 23

This Monday, Nov. 23, 2020 satellite image from Planet Labs Inc. annotated by TankerTrackers.com, shows a damaged tank and fire-suppressing foam on the ground at a Saudi Arabian Oil Co. facility in Jiddah, Saudi Arabia. Yemen's Houthi rebels said they struck a Saudi oil facility in the port city of Jiddah on Monday with a new cruise missile, just hours after the kingdom finished hosting its virtual Group of 20 leaders summit. (Planet Labs Inc. via AP)

November 23

Covid-19, football and schools: World in Photos, Nov. 23

A look at the top photos from around the globe.

November 23

VIDEO: Covid-19, football and schools: World in Photos, Nov. 23

November 23

Libya’s rivals meet to discuss transitional government

The U.N. says Libya’s rivals have begun a second round of talks on a mechanism to choose a transitional government that would lead the conflict-stricken country to elections in December next year

November 23

Stephanie Williams, Acting Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Support Mission speaks during a news conference in Tunis, Tunisia, Sunday, Nov. 15, 2020. Libya's warring sides have agreed to hold nationwide elections in December next year, the top U.N. official for the North African country said Friday in a sign of progress from the U.N.-brokered peace talks underway in Tunisia. (AP Photo/Walid Haddad)

November 23

Turkey protests German search of Libya-bound Turkish ship

Turkey has summoned top EU, Italian and German diplomats after a German frigate that is part of a EU mission to enforce an arms blockade against Libya intercepted and searched a Turkish freighter

November 23

Egypt adds leading activist, politician to terror watch list

Egypt's official journal reports that an Egyptian court has placed nearly 30 people, including a leading pro-democracy activist and an Islamist politician, on a terrorism watch list over accusations they joined the banned Muslim Brotherhood

November 23

FILE - In this Sept. 22, 2014, file photo, Egypt's leading pro-democracy activist Alaa Abdel-Fattah takes a moment as he speaks about his late father Ahmed Seif, one of Egypt's most respected human rights lawyers, during a conference held at the American University in Cairo, Egypt. An Egyptian court placed nearly 30 people, including Abdel-Fattah and an Islamist politician, on a terrorism watch list over accusations they joined the banned Muslim Brotherhood, the official gazette reported Monday, Nov. 23, 2020. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty, File)

November 23

Qatar: Police face 3-year sentences over invasive searches

Prosecutors in Qatar say that the airport police officers who ordered forced vaginal examinations of female passengers after an abandoned newborn was discovered in a trash can face possible three-year prison sentences

November 23

FILE - In this Nov. 7, 2019, file photo, a Qatar Airways jet approaches Philadelphia International Airport in Philadelphia. Qatar apologized Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2020, after authorities forcibly examined female passengers from a Qatar Airways flight to Australia to try to identify who might have given birth to a newborn baby found abandoned at the airport earlier this month. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)

November 23

EU, UK still have 'fundamental' differences in trade talks

With the European Union’s chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier in quarantine, trade talks with the United Kingdom continued by videoconference this week

November 23

FILE - In this file photo dated Thursday, Nov. 12, 2020, European Commission's Head of Task Force for Relations with the United Kingdom Michel Barnier, centre, leaves the Conference Centre in London with unidentified members of his team. The Brexit trade negotiations have been suspended Thursday Nov. 19, 2020, at a crucial stage because an EU negotiator has tested positive for the coronavirus and EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier said that “we have decided to suspend the negotiations at our level for a short period.” (AP Photo/Frank Augstein, FILE)

November 23

Police detain people at Poland's latest abortion protests

Police detained several people, including a photo reporter, as women-led protests over abortion rights flared up again in Warsaw and elsewhere in Poland

November 23

Officials: 113 bodies found in secret graves in Mexico

Mexican authorities say they've recovered 113 bodies and additional human remains from a secret grave outside the western city of Guadalajara

November 23

Reggaeton star Bad Bunny tests positive for coronavirus

Reggaeton superstar Bad Bunny has tested positive for the new coronavirus

November 23

In this screen shot provided by ABC on Sunday, Nov. 22, 2020, Bad Bunny accepts the award for favorite latin album for “YHLQMDLG” at the American Music Awards at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles. (ABC via AP)

November 23

Giant wind turbine collapses in northern Sweden; no one hurt

A 230-meter (755 feet) tall wind turbine in Arctic Sweden came crashing down during the weekend as high winds swept across the region

November 23

Rights experts: Japan was wrong to detain Carlos Ghosn

The experts urged Japan to pay the former Nissan boss compensation.

November 23

FILE - In this Sept. 29, 2020, file photo, Nissan's former executive Carlos Ghosn attends a press conference at the Holy Spirit University of Kaslik (USEK), north of Beirut, Lebanon. A civil court trial began in Japan Friday, Nov. 13, over Nissan’s demand for 10 billion yen ($95 million) in damages from former Chairman Ghosn over what the automaker claimed was harm it suffered from various financial misconduct.(AP Photo/Hussein Malla, File)

November 23

UN: COVID-19 lockdowns slashed pollutants, not CO2 levels

The U.N. weather agency says a slowdown in industrial activity linked to the coronavirus pandemic has cut emissions of pollutants and heat-trapping greenhouse gases, but hasn’t reduced their record levels in the atmosphere

November 23

Man walks outside to see spectacular northern lights

The spectacular phenomenon was seen by the man outside his home on the Norwegian island of Senja.

November 23

Protesters set fire to Guatemala's Congress building

Thousands marched through the country's capital city to speak out against President Alejandro Giammattei over approving a budget that cut educational and health spending.

November 23

Aquarium welcomes new colony gentoo penguin chicks

Sydney aquarium welcomes a new colony of baby penguins.

November 23

French ex-President Sarkozy's trial for corruption suspended

The trial of former French President Nicolas Sarkozy for corruption and influence peddling has been suspended Monday less than two hours after it started, to allow a medical report on one of the defendants

November 23

FILE - In this Oct.29, 2020 file photo, former French President Nicolas Sarkozy attends a ceremony in Nice, southern France. Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy wants authorities to drop an investigation into alleged illegal financing of his 2007 campaign by the regime of late Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi. A French-Lebanese businessman this week backtracked on claims he made in 2016 that he had handed Sarkozy suitcases of Libyan cash (Valery Hache; Pool via AP, File)

November 23

UAE eases limits on foreign ownership to attract investors

The United Arab Emirates has relaxed and removed a range of limits on foreign ownership of companies in the country’s latest bid to boost its global status and attract foreign investors

November 23

FILE - In this Nov. 18, 2020 file photo, people walk past the U.S.A Pavilion at the site of Dubai Expo 2020, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The UAE has relaxed and removed a range of limits on foreign ownership of companies, state-run media reported Monday, Nov. 23, 2020, in the country’s latest bid to boost its global status and attract foreign investors. The dramatic changes come as the UAE has spent billions of dollars preparing to host some 25 million visitors for the World Expo, which was pushed to 2021 due to the pandemic. (AP Photo/Kamran Jebreili, File)

November 23

Burkina Faso counts ballots; extremist threats affected vote

Votes are being counted in Burkina Faso after Sunday’s presidential and legislative elections, where threats of extremist violence linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State prevented parts of the country from casting ballots

November 23

An election official counts the ballots in at a polling station in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, for the presidential and legislative elections late Sunday Nov. 22, 2020. (AP Photo/Sophie Garcia)

November 23

Greek military setting up field hospital for COVID-19 cases

Greece’s armed forces are setting up a field hospital with more than 50 beds in the northern city of Thessaloniki as part of plans to tackle a surge in the number of coronavirus infections and hospitalizations

November 23

Medical staff conducts a rapid COVID test on an elderly woman in Athens, Monday, Nov. 23, 2020. Greece has seen a major resurgence of the virus after the summer, leading to dozens of deaths each day and thousands of new infections. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

November 23

South Africa judge files criminal complaint against ex-prez

Former president Jacob Zuma staged a dramatic walkout at a corruption inquiry.

November 23

Speedboat taking migrants to Greece partially sinks; 1 dead

Greece’s coast guard says a speedboat that appeared to have been smuggling migrants to the island of Rhodes from nearby Turkey partially sank before reaching land, leaving one person dead

November 23

Firefighters retrieve the body of a migrant from the beach after a shipwreck on the island of Rhodes, southeastern Greece, Monday, Nov. 23, 2020. Greece's coast guard says a speedboat that appeared to have been smuggling migrants to the island of Rhodes from nearby Turkey partially sank before reaching land Monday, leaving one person dead. (Argyris Mantikos/Eurokinissi via AP)

November 23

Cineworld secures financial help until hoped-for reopening

Cineworld, which last month closed its cinemas in the U.S. and the U.K., has secured more than $750 million of new financing that it hopes will see it through the coronavirus pandemic

November 23

Trial opens in death of toddler in migrant smuggling case

A trial has opened in the shooting death of a two-year-old toddler who was in a van during a high-speed chase between police and suspected migrant smugglers seeking to get to Britain

November 23

A woman hangs a piece of children's clothing on a line during a solidarity event for Mawda Shawri at the courthouse in Brussels, Monday, Nov. 23, 2020. A trial opened on Monday in the shooting death of two-year old toddler, Mawda Shawri, who was in a van during a high-speed chase between police and suspected migrant smugglers seeking to get to Britain. At the trial in Belgium's southern Mons, a policeman stands accused of involuntary manslaughter and two other men for being suspected migrant smugglers. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)

November 23

Indonesia's confirmed coronavirus cases exceed half million

Indonesia’s confirmed COVID-19 cases have breached half a million as the government of the world’s fourth most populous nation scrambles to procure vaccines to help it win the fight against the coronavirus pandemic

November 23

Students wearing face masks sit spaced apart during a trial run of a class with COVID-19 protocol at the Nurul Amal Islamic school in Tangerang, Indonesia, Monday, Nov. 23, 2020. (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana)

November 23

UN experts: Ex-Renault-Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn wrongly detained in Japan, urges compensation from Japanese government

November 23

AstraZeneca says late-stage trials of its COVID-19 vaccine were “highly effective’’ in preventing disease

November 23

Northern Lights dance in the sky over Norway

Spectacular Northern Lights revealed as man walks outside his home on the Norwegian island of Senja.

November 23

VIDEO: Northern Lights dance in the sky over Norway

November 23

New Zealand leader Ardern offers virus know-how to Joe Biden

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has become the latest world leader to congratulate President-elect Joe Biden on his election victory, saying she offered to share her nation’s expertise on dealing the coronavirus

November 23

In this photo provided by New Zealand Prime Minister's Office, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern talks with U.S. President-elect Joe Biden on phone at her office in Wellington, New Zealand, Monday, Nov. 23, 2020. Ardern became the latest world leader to congratulate Biden on his election victory Monday and says she offered to share her nation's expertise on dealing the coronavirus. (New Zealand Prime Minister's Office via AP)

November 23

Hong Kong’s Joshua Wong taken into custody after guilty plea

Charges are related to a demonstration outside police headquarters last year.

November 23

Hong Kong activists, from left, Joshua Wong, Ivan Lam and Agnes Chow arrive at a court in Hong Kong, Monday, Nov. 22. 2020. The trio appear at court for their trial as they faces charges related to the besieging of a police station during anti-government protests last year. (AP Photo/Vincent Yu)

November 22

Mexican church decries Senate's marijuana legalization vote

Senate voted to legalize possession, cultivation and use of small amounts of pot

November 22

Marijuana plants grow at a makeshift camp outside of the Senate building in Mexico City, Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. Mexican marijuana activists have been camping outside the Senate since February of this year, growing a crop of marijuana plants and smoking it as a way to pressure the government into legalizing recreational cannabis. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo)

November 22

Guatemala condemns fire at Congress; 12 injured in protests

Guatemala’s government says fires set by protesters at Congress are “terrorist acts” even as the Inter-American Human Rights Commission is condemning what it calls “excessive use of force” by police against demonstrators

November 22

Debris lays in front of graffiti that reads in Spanish "Corrupt," outside of the Congress building that was damaged during protests in Guatemala City, Sunday, Nov. 22, 2020. Protesters broke into the building and set it partially on fire amid growing demonstrations against President Alejandro Giammattei and the legislature for approving a controversial budget that cut educational and health spending. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo)

November 22

Amount of materials extracted from Earth tripled since 1970, UN report finds

In 2017 alone, more than 38 billion tons of material were extracted for trade.

November 22

In this March 27, 2020, file photo, a worker picks lemons inside the orchards of Samag Services, Inc., in Mesa, Calif.

November 22

G-20 'family photo' projected during summit

A photo of the annual G-20 summit was projected onto the Salwa Palace in Saudi Arabia as world leaders meet virtually amid the pandemic.

November 22

Spain's foreign minister visits Senegal to discuss migration

Spain’s foreign minister has met with Senegal’s president in the West African country’s capital to discuss the sudden increase of Senegalese migrants attempting to reach the Canary Islands by boat

November 22

Migrants stand at the Arguineguin port in Gran Canaria island, Spain, after being rescued in the Atlantic Ocean by emergency workers on Thursday, Oct. 19, 2020. Under increasing pressure from the steady build-up of Africans' arrivals to its southern Canary Islands, the Spanish government has launched an all-front offensive, including active diplomacy, to avoid becoming the next black spot on Europe's failing record handling migration flows. (AP Photo/Javier Bauluz)

November 22

Palestinians may limit Christmas celebrations in Bethlehem

The Palestinian Health Ministry has recommended strict limits on Christmas celebrations in Bethlehem this year due to the coronavirus outbreak

November 22

Palestinian Christians celebrate the lighting of a Christmas tree outside the Church of the Nativity, traditionally believed by Christians to be the birthplace of Jesus Christ in the West Bank city of Bethlehem, Saturday, Nov. 30, 2019. The Palestinian Health Ministry has recommended strict limits on Christmas celebrations in Bethlehem this year due to the coronavirus outbreak. Celebrations in the biblical town revered by Christians as Jesus’ birthplace are usually attended by thousands of people from around the world. In its recommendations Saturday, Nov. 21, 2020 it said religious services on Christmas Eve should also have limited attendance. (AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed)

November 22

More than 300 detained by police in Belarus protests

Many people were beaten during protests calling for the president to resign.

November 22

Belarusian riot police stand to block demonstrators during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus, Sunday, Nov. 22, 2020. The Belarusian human rights group Viasna says more than 140 people have been arrested and many of them beaten by police during protests calling for the country's authoritarian president to resign. The demonstrations that attracted thousands were the 16th consecutive Sunday of large protests against President Alexander Lukashenko. (AP Photo)

November 22

Netanyahu rival launches probe, testing partnership

Defense minister investigates controversial purchase of German subs years ago.

November 22

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu listens during a news conference in Jerusalem, Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. Israel’s defense minister on Sunday, Nov. 22, 2020 appointed a committee to investigate the government's controversial purchase of German submarines several years ago — a step that further strained his already poor relationship with Netanyahu. (AP Photo/Maya Alleruzzo, Pool)

November 22

Burkina Faso votes amid ongoing extremist violence, threats

Fears of attacks by extremists prevented voting in many parts of Burkina Faso on Sunday, as the country went to the polls for presidential and legislative elections marred by ongoing violence linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State

November 22

Burkina Faso President Roch Kabore attends a campaign rally in Bobo-Dioulasso Thursday Nov. 5, 2020. Burkina Faso will vote in presidential and legislative elections on upcoming Sunday, amid escalating extremist violence that's killed more than 2,000 people this year and displaced some one million people from their homes.(AP Photo/Sam Mednick)

November 22

Restorations continue in Colombia after recent hurricanes

Recovery operations continued in areas battered by Hurricane Iota.

November 22

Syria's Assad names new FM to replace late diplomat

Syria’s President Bashar Assad has named a new foreign minister

November 22

FILE - In this July 24, 2019 file photo, then Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad speaks to reporters in Damascus, Syria. President Bashar Assad issued a decree on Sunday Nov. 22, 2020, naming Mekdad as the new foreign minister replacing Walid al-Moallem, a long time diplomat who held the post for more than a decade until he passed away last week. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar, File)

November 22

Putin holding off on US presidential congratulations

Russia's willing to work with whomever is declared the next president, he says.

November 22

Russian President Vladimir Putin listens during a meeting in the Kremlin, in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. (Alexei Nikolsky, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)

November 22

Erdogan says Turkey's place is in Europe before EU summit

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says Turkey sees itself as a part of Europe, but he has called on the European Union to keep its promises on issues such as Turkey's membership bid and refugees

November 22